The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) uprooted and destroyed marijuana plants worth an estimated P2.19 million during a two-day operation along the disputed border of Ilocos Sur and Benguet, authorities said.
The joint operation was conducted from Sept. 10 to 11 in an area between Barangay Licungan in Sugpon, Ilocos Sur, and Barangay Tacadang in Kibungan, Benguet.
It involved PDEA Ilocos Sur Provincial Office, Sugpon Municipal Police Station, 103rd Mobile Company of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 1, Ilocos Sur Provincial Intelligence and Detective Management Unit, Ilocos Sur Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit, and Provincial Intelligence Team Ilocos Sur.
Authorities identified the target area as a roughly 1,760-square-meter marijuana plantation.
A total of 10,960 fully grown marijuana plants were uprooted and destroyed, with a standard value of P2,192,000, based on the Dangerous Drugs Board’s valuation.
No cultivators were arrested during the operation. Authorities said they were verifying ownership of the land and conducting follow-up investigations to identify those responsible for cultivating the marijuana plants.
PDEA Region 1 Director Julius Paderes said the agency would continue its marijuana eradication campaign to curb the supply of the illegal drug at its source.
‘We will continue and sustain our marijuana eradication efforts to curb the source of marijuana in our region. We call on local government officials to help stop this nefarious activity that destroys the future of our youth and tarnishes the image of their local government units,’ Paderes said.
Authorities said charges for violating Section 16 (Cultivation of Dangerous Drugs), Article II of Republic Act No. 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, would be filed against the unidentified cultivators.